Somewhere Else
by Pyroteknix
Summary: Matt Kagumi's life is a mess. He can't blade like his schoolmates, his dad wants to remarry, and his friend keeps pushing him in the wrong direction. With nothing to live for, he only wishes to fit in his new neighborhood and find a place he belongs in.


Somewhere Else  
  
-pyRO: I dedicate this (presumably short-lived) fic to Mystique Kitty and Cherry Rain, who did an awesome job of writing a school fic. You guys rock and I was totally inspired by your story… Problem is, I don't think my style fits this so well…. ^____^  
  
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I really wish I wasn't stuck here in this village and their stupid school with all their beyblading fanatics... I just want to be back home, where everyone wasn't so concerned with the nonsensical sport. If only my dad hadn't gotten fired in the first place... I really shouldn't blame him. It would have been easy to support himself with his salary but I guess he wanted to give me a decent life... Ah well, I might as well make the most out of my stay here.  
  
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"Okay, just for the record, this class did extremely well in the last test. As your teacher, I am amazed more than half of the class scored a perfect grade after just two sessions in advanced theoretical beyblading techniques! Except for you, Kagumi. Getting only your name right in the test isn't something to be proud of."  
  
I lowered my head while the rest of the class laughed. Everyone aced this class. Except for me, of course. Thank God I get the best grades in the rest of the classes.  
  
"I'm sorry, sir. I was careless." I answered the exact same way when our practical beyblading teacher wondered why I couldn't make my beyblade move the way it was supposed to- or even get it into the dish, for that matter... there was that really baaaad time I'd managed to get it into our teacher's face...   
  
"Then you'd do well to be more careful, Matt. Honestly, if it wasn't for your fantastic grades in your other subjects, you'd fail school."  
  
Our teacher was a nice guy, really. Just had to get past the notion that beyblading was the most important thing in the world... Wait, now that you think of it, the entire class has to get rid of that idea too. Hell, practically the entire school needed to do that! Anyway, Mathematics was up next. I love Math. But because I love it and am good at it, everyone thinks I'm a nerd. Which is partially true, actually.   
  
I guess I'm a good-looking guy, comparatively. Okay, maybe not good-looking. More like normal and inconspicuous. I'm relatively lanky and I figure I have a more or less athletic build. I think my head isn't that bad either... Nice messy brown and hair and expressive eyes of the same color. Finally, something redeeming! I think I inherited that from my mom. I swear my dad's eyes are more of little slits than anything. I'm really grateful for my normalcy, unlike those weirdoes with blue or purple hair, and am pretty sure that my simple look is probably the one factor why nobody seems to notice (and, at the same time, bully) me.  
  
Well, their social strata has good reason to hate me anyway. I'm tops in every class aside from beyblading and have, as publicly announced, the highest freaking IQ in the high school. I also am part of the little known soccer team, which suddenly became notorious when I joined them. Good timing too, as I became the reason for their repeated losses. Aside from that, I made friends with another nutcase (resigned to his fate as an outcast and therefore a freak), whose reputation for being weird was once greater than mine. Once.   
  
Oh, here comes our Math teacher. I swear I can do a better job teaching this superbly interesting subject than him... but we have to consider the rest of the class. Well, I guess beggars can't be choosers. Hahaha...  
  
I think too much.  
  
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"Hey, Matt! Heard you got a zero in the theoretical beyblading crap test? Damn man, that had got to be the easiest one yet! I aced it without studying!"  
  
Reynard Caldwell Junior. More commonly known as Rin. Rich yet at the same time, nonconformist, somewhat punk-ish, lazy and henceforth, unpopular. Plus he actually had a bitbeast, something the other kids didn't have. Jealousy, anyone? He has brown hair, lighter than mine, which he wears with a single, long braid down his back. He's waaaaay tall and people recognize him for that. Helps him out with his favorite sports, he says.  
  
"Yeah well, I heard you bombed on the History test. Now that was an easy test." I retorted, whilst slapping a friendly hand onto the back of my buddy. Rin takes a private tutor for his studies but it doesn't help that much, apparently. He certainly hasn't started passing anything. He laughed and grinned, showing off his unusually sharp fangs. For a guy with English descent, he looks pretty much like an Asian. With the possible exception of his amazing height.  
  
"Dude, you know how many people flunked that? You were probably the only guy in our year who got perfect. I really wish I had your brains, man."  
  
"I wish I had your money! That way I could get out of this messed up place and head back to where I really belong, away from beyblades and away from our nutty classmates."  
  
Rin punched me hard on the shoulder. Ow.  
  
"Hey, you're forgetting that means leaving me behind. No way am I going to treat you to free pizza anymore if you're just planning to leave behind your ONLY friend here, may I add."  
  
"Not like you have many either!" I laughed. I was one of Rin's only friends too. The other one was Michael, a professional beyblader and a guy whose popularity never really suffered that much. "Last I remember, I'm the only other guy who actually talks with you in the first place. Oh wait, I forgot you talk to your stuffed toys at night."  
  
He hit me again. Ow.  
  
"Shh! Not so loud! I'd hate it if somebody else discovered I keep stuffed toys with me!"  
  
While we were walking and talking down the hall leading to the cafeteria, I thought a little. Yeah, I'd feel really bad if I left Rin behind. I had good chums back at my old school but Rin is still easily the most loyal, supportive one I've ever had. Sure, he was a bit crazy but then again, who am I to talk? Birds of a feather flock together. I remember the first time I met him. The loser was staring at a bunch of girls like the pervert he was when he decided to flip their skirts up (Mini-skirted girls are one of the few things I like about this school). I had the bad luck of standing right behind him then. He sprinted off before they saw him and voila! The next thing I knew I was staring up at the lovely blue sky and wondering how much of a contrast it was to the three lovely red handprints on my face. I spent the entire afternoon hunting him down. I really can't remember how we became friends after that...  
  
Donk. Ow! Damn it, I walked into one of those stupid poles again! Why can't they get out of my way? Argh, I'm so careless.  
  
"Hehe... Stupid boy. Stop thinking so much, it'll be the cause of your death."  
  
"Stupid boy. Stop talking so much, it'll be the cause of your death. No, that's not right... Stupid boy. Stop flirting with girls, who, by the way, despise the sight of your face, it'll be the cause of your death."  
  
"Hey, the girls dig me!" Rin protested heatedly. I like to tease him about that. Always gets his goat. "Of course, I wouldn't blame you if you envy me..."  
  
"Shaddup, O Great One. I'd rather beyblade than have girls falling over me like morons." I snapped back. My answer wasn't entirely true though... Oh well, dreams are free, aren't they? Rin chewed his lip as his train of thought chugged along. Amazing, he was making an honest effort to think. Wonders never cease. But Rin's thought processes sometimes do.   
  
"That reminds me, I owe you a lesson in beyblading, right? You dared me to teach you how to blade that time I forced you to drink those glasses of brandy."  
  
"You got me drunk, moron head." I snapped. I tried to punch him for that the following day but he knocked me out. Never attempt to fight with a hangover. I would have known that but the alcohol might have temporarily short-circuited my brain.   
  
"Yeah, so what? Dare's a dare. Plus it might-" Rin take an overly dramatic breath of air "make you good, Matt! Hey, now that you think of it, that's a fairly amusing idea... Right after classes, man! My place!"  
  
Rin waved in a light way and left me standing there as he ran over to a cafeteria table with some girls in it.  
  
That kid always gets me into trouble.  
  
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I walked out of the main gates of our expansive school, Redgate High. True to its name, the entire fencing apparatus of the school was painted a dark crimson. Pretty cool. Some posters with the achievements of the school were also strewn across the cement barriers, depicting the various teams that had won. My team was there too, stuck in abject obscurity beside the field hockey and track teams, which had earned a few medals more than us. Right beside the main gate though was the gigantic team banner of the very much acclaimed beyblading varsity team. Basically, it was just the All Starz combined with a few exceptional students. Still, those guys did pretty well. Hmm... Looks like they lost the gold to BBA High again... Silver in the doubles matches too. Not bad all in all. At least they're better than my soccer team, the cellar dwellers of the inter-school league. Which is supposedly my fault. -___-;  
  
"Hey, Kagumi!" Uh oh. It's those girls from the first time Rin framed me. They never got over that, really. Best to pick up the pace a little with my walking... Okay, better to run instead.  
  
"Come back here, you pervert! We found out you were the hentai baka taking pictures of us in the locker room! We're going to tear you limb from limb, Kagumi!"  
  
Damn you, Rin. Damn you. Once again, your hormonally incapacitated mind has ruined my life. Oh well, now that I started running, I doubt those idiots would ever listen to what I had to say. Tactical error. Should have stayed still. Running is proof of guilt. Oh, crap, they're still after me! I swear I'm going to kill Rin when I get to his house...  
  
I wonder why everyone calls me by my family name?  
  
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"CALDWELL! I'M GOING TO KILL YOU! YOU KNOW HOW LONG I HAD TO RUN BEFORE I LOST THEM!?!" I shouted in frustration, carrying my burned out rubber shoes. I might as well have transferred to the track team with all that exercise I had INVOLUNTARILY gotten.  
  
No answer.  
  
"Hey, Rin! I'm here, man! If you just duped me into coming here for nothing I'm going to kill you twofold slower!"  
  
No answer.  
  
This is getting creepy. Hey, now that you think of it, Rin's paranoid rich mom doesn't normally leave the front door open. What if they were robbed or something and killed? ARGH! I better go check if everything's all right, I mean, I can't just ignore the safety of my friend and all-  
  
"BOO!" I fell face first onto the hard wooden floor of Rin's mansion. Once again, he managed to fool my by playing on my insecurities... Wily brat. I'll get him for this some other time.  
  
"Nutcase, I thought you guys were murdered or something!"  
  
"Isn't that a little extreme?" He asked casually before gesturing for me to follow him. Good point. My ideas are usually a little bit on the insane side. Otherwise, they're too timid to work. Ah well, the price of brilliance.   
  
His house is huge. It's probably the size of the building where my family's apartment is located. With an additional garden, fountain and indoor and outdoor swimming pool. Oh, and the sports complex located a short ride on the golf cart away. I'd really love to hang around here more but his parents are so paranoid and his twin sister is well...  
  
"RIIIIN! I heard you come in, you little brat! Were you messing around my room again? My manga collection is mixed up! Reynard?"  
  
A female voice screamed from the upper floor of the marble and wood mansion, heralding the arrival of his twin. Okay, Rin doesn't really lie when he says girls dig him, because frankly, he's not that bad-looking. But his sister is... wow. Despite my extensive vocabulary, I've always found it hard to adequately describe his twin. Slightly less tall, nicely curved and with luxuriant brown hair worn in braided tresses down her back. Beauty in simplicity. And when she wasn't reprimanding her younger (by a few minutes) brother, she always wore the amazing, photo-perfect smile. Oh, and she was really good to me, unlike the rest of the population. I just wish she would stop treating me like a small kid all the time. We're the same age, for crying out loud!  
  
"Oh, Matt, you're here! What did Rin drag you along for this time around?" She asked cheerily, coming down the flight of stairs. She dresses like him. Loose, informal wear which makes her look like a tomboy. Well, she sort of is one anyway...  
  
"Hi, Leanne. I got tricked into taking beyblade lessons from Rin." I replied and grinned at her. She cracked a smile and walked up to me, patting me on my shoulder.  
  
"Maybe I should join. I could teach you a thing or two about beyblading!" Leanne boasted and pushed me to where Rin was probably setting up the room for practice. Like her brother, she seemed to have a very, er, shall I say, tactless and upfront way of dealing with things. Well, the straightest arrow flies furthest I guess.  
  
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~Rin's POV~  
  
Uh oh. I heard my sister back there. I guess she found out I was scrounging through her Japanese comics again. Damn, and I was so sure I had put it back in the right order. Either way, better act like nothing happened and look busy with arranging the dish. Which will be pretty easy, seeing how complex this new automated arena dad bought is. I guess he wants to preserve the Caldwell tradition of beyblading excellence. I'm still trying to figure out how my paranoid parents even were good beybladers in their time.  
  
The finely crafted oak doors opened unceremoniously and disturbed my foray into my parents' past. There's my sister now, walking in with the dog she calls Matt. She always treats him like a sad little puppy. Pisses him off pretty well too so I probably won't tell her to stop that any time soon.  
  
"Hey, Rin... I heard you were going to give loser boy-"  
  
"HEY! Just because I can't blade properly doesn't mean I'm a loser..." What'd I say?   
  
"Hahaha... Just kidding, Matt! Can't you take a little joke? Anyway, I heard you guys were going to go blading? Can I join? I might be able to teach him a few moves..."  
  
"Yeah, Lin-" Her nickname. Mine was patterned after hers. Trust my mom to come up with a cute, adorable set of names for her precious babies... "You can join. I dunno if you can keep up with me though... I kick ass when I beyblade." Matt snorted in disagreement.  
  
"Hardly anyone wants to blade with the 'rich nutcase' at school so he battles little grade school kids at the park instead."  
  
I presently jabbed my friend in the back of his head. For such a smart guy he has yet to learn how to shut up. Look who's talking...  
  
"Nobody asked your opinion, genius. At the very least, I'm better than you."  
  
"Well, that makes you second-to-the-worst ever beyblader then." Lin interrupted, shoving Matt towards the extremely modern and expensive dish, which I was kneeling beside. She folded her arms across her chest and stared appraisingly at me, one eyebrow arched. "Can't get dad's machine to work, can you?"  
  
"I was doing just fine before you came in and destroyed the balance of good and evil."  
  
"Just for you, I won't interpret that at all. Look here, Reynard, all you have to do is enter the access code, plug in the support cable and modify the randomizer. Just make sure that when you plug the support cable you don't place it in the MA cord slot, 'cause that would fry the automation system..."  
  
I give up. She can do the work if she's so smart... "Fine then, you do it."  
  
"Okay. Watch the master, little brother..." Lin answered, smiling that endearing smile of hers. In a few quick movements she had the high tech gizmo up and running. I know, somehow, someway, I was born inferior to my irritatingly perfect sister.  
  
"See, Rin? Get your beyblades... I want to rip yours to shreds. Oh, and Matt-"  
  
All malice gone now. She flashed that boy-winning smile at Matt. My buddy seemed fairly unaffected, aside from the responsive grin he shot back. I know he found my sister cute and all but I guess he'd probably be interested in someone who could hold her own in terms of intelligence. One of these days he'll end up with some ice queen for a date... Poor guy.  
  
"-there are a few extra beyblades in the oak closet over there. Take your pick." Lin finished and he nodded placidly in response. Matt walked over to the open closet and pulled out a particularly smooth and aerodynamic model, one of my old ones. Nice speed and fluid handling but I had my doubts whether he would be able to control such an advanced piece of work. I moved away from him by a few cautious steps. Better safe than sorry. Matt added to a beyblade equaled DANGER.   
  
"Okay, Lin, Matt, I've set the dish to reduced friction mode. This way it'll be easier to move your feather-weight blade around, Matt. At the same time, I doubt your heavy beyblade's going to find any grip on this surface, Lin..."  
  
My sister growled threateningly in reply. I smirked back at her. I had set this thing to my advantage after all. Slippery enough for my speedy and light beyblade, which was designed to suck every bit of traction from whatever surface for maximum acceleration, and too slippery for Lin's heavy crusher. Momentum would kill her here, while concurrently tipping the scales in my favor. Dude, those lessons at school are actually paying off. I can't believe it!  
  
"Of course, not like you can beat me without an unfair advantage, Rin." She added slyly and I shrugged, pointing to my clueless friend, who was having difficulty attaching his beyblade to a spring grip launcher. I wonder how he was even able to take the practical examinations at school...  
  
"I did this for him, naturally. I don't think he would be able to move his beyblade around in the regular dish." Good excuse. My sibling has a soft spot for that little moron, even though he doesn't realize it. She shrugged and smiled back at me. Bingo. I am such a cunning little fox. Sometimes you amaze yourself, Rin Caldwell...  
  
"Well, okay then... You and Matt against each other first... So I can size up your abilities, Rin."  
  
"Whatever you like." I replied with a dismissive wave of my hand and set myself up for battle. Wait a second... I'm going up against Matt. I'm supposed to teach the nutter. My sister nodded and then put her hand up, ready to announce the start of our little session.  
  
"Ready, set, rip!" Lin shouted and brought her hand slicing down.  
  
I released my elegantly crafted blade into the dish only to find Matt had somehow managed to launched his into the parquet floor. Oh, crap, he's scratching it! Mom's going to kills us if she sees what he's doing to the polished finish! I rushed over to his spinning (weakly) beyblade and scooped it up.   
  
"Damn man, aim a little. You could do with some hand-eye coordination. You're an athlete!"  
  
"Albeit not a very good one, remember? I seriously don't think soccer improves hand-eye coordination either... Maybe that's why it's called FOOTball in other countries." Matt replied in his resigned, yet somewhat optimistic tone. I don't know how that guy lives with all the crap in his life. It's like he has a will made out of iron or something...  
  
I laughed and tossed his borrowed blade back to him. "Good point."  
  
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MSN Messenger: drifter soul - (wandering_samurai18@hotmail.com) has signed in.  
  
fighting fox says:  
  
Hey Matt, how's your cut doing? Seriously, you need practice with the beyblade.  
  
drifter soul says:  
  
Seriously, I need to avoid the beyblade. The thing is evil. I'll get you for forcing me to do that someday, Rin.  
  
fighting fox says:  
  
You just say that 'cause you're not good at it yet. ^___^ Arrogant prick.  
  
drifter soul says:  
  
-___-; Say what you want... I wasn't made for the sport. It's pretty much useless anyway.  
  
fighting fox says:  
  
Useless? Dude, you know how many girls follow around those professional bladers at BBA High? Damn man, that is NOT useless. Waaaay far from useless.  
  
drifter soul says:  
  
lol. You are a hormonally challenged psycho. Is there anything on your mind that does not revolve around fucking a girl?  
  
fighting fox says:  
  
No. So what? I'm 16 years old and ready for some action here! I am NOT going to go through high school without getting laid!  
  
drifter soul says:  
  
o__0 You are one desperate guy, Rin.  
  
fighting fox says:  
  
Yeah well, you act like you haven't hit puberty yet! Jeez, you could at least show some interest in the opposite sex! Or maybe you bend the other way... hehehe Stay away! lol  
  
drifter soul says:  
  
Bastard. Of course I like girls. Just not the flirty or bitchy girls who populate our school. Why can't any one of them be a nice, quiet girl who supports you no matter how messed up you are? Not that I'm messed up, of course.  
  
fighting fox says:  
  
lol Dude, the only girls you're going to pick up are the girls who don't talk, don't want to admit they like you, and definitely don't want to have sex.  
  
drifter soul says:  
  
You're going waaay too fast. ^___^ I'd be perfectly happy having a frostball for a girlfriend.  
  
fighting fox says:  
  
Well, since I can't change your twisted little mind, buddy, I'll give you some advice. Look somewhere else. I doubt the airheads in our school can keep up with your standards.   
  
drifter soul says:  
  
Yeah, I know. *shakes head* plus they all hate me thanks to you. Reminds me, I haven't gotten around to killing you for framing me AGAIN. I nearly died.   
  
fighting fox says:  
  
lol. What can I say? I'm guilty. Anywayz, keep practicing with the blade man and in no time, I'm sure you'll get the girl you want.  
  
drifter soul says:  
  
Why can't I just practice soccer instead? I'm sure that's equally popular.  
  
fighting fox says:  
  
lol Get a life, Matt. Soccer WAS popular. Beyblading IS popular. C ya tomorrow. Good luck with Practical Beyblading class.  
  
drifter soul says:  
  
Damn, I forgot about that... I'm supposed to take a make up test for my, er, screw up last week.  
  
fighting fox says:  
  
what the hell... night.  
  
fighting fox - (rin_is_king@hotmail.com) has signed out.  
  
drifter soul - (wandering_samurai@hotmail.com) has signed out.  
  
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^___^ I haven't written a story that isn't action in a loooong time. Feels good to stretch and do something lighter. Read and review!  
  
*yawn* ... 


End file.
